The Heiltsuk First Nation, located in the heart of British Columbia’s Great Bear Rainforest, has a long history in which the lives of people are inextricably entwined with the lives of grizzly bears. A new paper in Ecology and Society links an exciting research and monitoring program with 10,000 years of place-based cultural identity.

On Prince of Wales Island in Alaska, the restoration of rivers goes hand-in-hand with the restoration of cultural traditions. Members of the Hydaburg Cooperative Association, a federally recognized indigenous tribe, are learning scientific techniques to monitor and assess salmon streams, streams that have been degraded over the decades. But that’s only part of the story: the Haida area also returning to cultural traditions, traditions even more imperiled than the streams.

The Haida community on Prince of Wales Island, Alaska, have long considered themselves “people of the salmon.” They rely on the fish for their food and culture. Now community members are being trained to become scientists. Their assessments could help get their streams protected under Alaska state law.

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